New Rivals 4 stars

Chase Winovich earns a fourth star from Rivals based on his senior film. Bryan Mone however, lost his 4th star. Very peculiar considering that he wasn't bad in the UA game, just didn't stand out. We'll see what happens when they hit the field though.

Well I think like any person there's good weight gain and bad weight gain. If you get to 300 lbs by eating taco bell vs. getting to 300 lbs by lifting weights and eating right, you're in two totally different spots

but several UA practice reports were reporting more positive stuff about him. Trying to locate the instance where a video was embedded showing Mone blowing up an OL - could have sworn it was here on MGoBlog. Didn't see a lot of negativity. Everything was neutral to positive.

Yeah...but if reports are neutral, it's understandable that he would drop. I mean, you should stand out if you want to stay in the top 100. There are two huge All-America games (Under Armour, Army), and I think each one has about 90 players participating. So there are roughly 180 players in those two games alone, plus guys who don't participate, guys in the Semper Fi game, etc.

I'm a guy who said I thought Mone was a top 100 guy last year, so I'm sort of undermining my opinion here. I just think from what I saw of his senior season and then in the UA game, he's not that level of player at his weight. He needs to turn some of that fat into muscle, maybe shed a few pounds altogether, and regain some of his explosiveness. His junior film was awesome. His senior film was meh.

that's a helpful explanation. i guess there's good weight and bad weight and it often depends on who is putting on the weight and how it affects his quickness. we saw that with derrick green, for instance. but magus, assume for a moment that mone could shed that bad weight and/or put it back on as good weight. with that assumption, what rating would you give him?

So really, if he pans out, since he's coming in early he could hypothetically be the same position as half a RS freshmen in terms of experience and strength&training. That could potentially pay huge dividends this year with the injury to Pipkins.

He is who he is, rankings be damned. Once he's in the fold and is practicing with the team, what Rivals had to say is irrelevant. I'd rather he was underrated and soar than overrated and have problems.

Any hope to add late additions to our class this year? I hear Malik will be in EL this weekend....is that recruitment all but over? Hard to imagine that we lose our top two in state kids to our rivals. ........

academics concern...ha. Division 1 football players on scholarship aren't too concerned with academics despite what comes out of their mouth. They want to play for Programs' that win, right now we are struggling, (hopefully short term), MSu just won the Rose Bowl. That's what is fresh.

Cmon MSU is not UM in academics but some people here make it sound like it is University of Phoenix. A guy of McDowell caliber is most likely a 3 year kid who is planning on going to the NFL and the degree is "secondary" no matter what parents say. Every kid says academics are top concern but if so Northwestern, Duke, Wake Forest, UM, and Stanford would be getting the top 5 classes every year (I am sure I am missing someone from a BCS conference but you get the point). Right now based on on field performance, and development if you are a top end defensive player it is difficult to argue against MSU. They are taking 2 and 3 star kids and making them NFL players and their unit has been top 10 yearly now since 2010 I believe. People have been saying their defense is going to "step back" since Greg Jones left campus. It is not happening.

Kids dont care about 1934, 1964, or 1994. They are going to look at the last half decade and the coaching staff responsible for it, or part of it. To that end UM, aside from Tennessee, might be the most wart-laden blue blood program in the land. If you compare the NFL pipeline of the past 5 years versus how it was 15 years ago it is damning. If you think kids are looking at what MSU sent to the NFL under Bobby Williams well you are living with unicorns and rainbows. I am not saying they are a NFL factory but for a Michigan kid, or Midwest kid programs like OSU and Wisconsin at this point and even Nebraska are sending more kids to the NFL than UM. Many now blame that on Rich Rod recruiting small kids or whatever but it is what it is. Until it is not.

If you are looking top 3 rounds which is what a kid like McDowell is thinking of himself (or Hand or anyone of that ilk), we have Martin, Graham, and Lewan the past half decade. Did I miss anyone? Mouton. So 4 kids post Carr. Jake Long was 08 which was the last "good draft" I'd say for UM. I think Manningham went top 3 rounds that year and Henne as well. Big drop off after. Most of UM's well known NFL players are "old dudes" to someone who is 15, 16, 17 - Brady, Woodson etc

For what most football players are looking for in regards to "academics", I can't really see a major difference between colleges. You're going to get quality instruction most anywhere you go. By "name", yes, UM would be superior, but if he actually applies himself to the academic part of school, would he get noticeably superior education from one school opposed to another?

Most major university faculty members are more focused on research and publication than they are with teaching classes anyway.

You don't make any sense. The mere fact you have to question why a family of UofM fans would ever "send a son to MSU" clearly proves that his parents are along for the ride. If his parents had as much influence as you seem to imply, he would be at Michigan already.

On a side note, you'd have to go back to Will Campbell to get the last #1 in-state player UM got, according to Rivals. In fact, most have gone to MSU. If McDowell does pick MSU, that will be the #1 player in-state 4 of the past 5 seasons for MSU....granted, none have been superstars (Gholston, Thomas, Burbridge) on the field for them.

The senior classes of Lewan/Schofield (2009) and current senior class (2010) lost 45% of their players to attrition already.

Hoke seems to be doing a good job keeping his two full classes together. If he can keep the classes together, redshirt players when indicated then I can spend less time on my Saturdays watching young players not quite ready for prime time "developing" on the fields (Bosch, Kalis, Stribling...) and instead watch developed Junior and Senior talent on the field.

This meme that the staff doesn't develop players isn't particularly factual given the ridiculous attrition rate of the last and present senior classes. Going forward, the "luxury" enjoyed by our rivals in Ohio and Sparty in having full classes will enable development in practice over years vs. me having to stare at the development (and its associated plus/minus) on the field.

but your concerns are in Arizona now. Hoke has kept players around, some attrition will happen, however, the attrition that occurred with Lewan and Schofield's class was BAD and the reason why we have struggled lately.

Regarding the necessity for results over the next 2 seasons (and unless armageddon hits next fall Brandon gives Hoke two years).

But let's be clear here. I am not making any excuse for Hoke here nor am I blaming RichRod. For whatever reason there has been historic and monumental attrition the likes of which have never been seen at Michigan. Losing half of your potential seniors and redshirt seniors over two years is not an excuse. It's explanatory about on-field development and performance, however.

I get the whole "youth" argument if you are talking about the offense. I'm more concerned about the development on defense. Depth was a concern, but many schools have to look to first or second year players for depth.

Here was the starting defense: (year in program is specific to Hoke/Mattison coaching)

I get that almost every back up behind the starting unit was a first or second year player, but to say the defense was so young just isn't true. Especially factoring in not only experience but age as well.

I've argued the same thing - UM defense was not "youthful" - frankly aside from TE and interior OL UM had plenty of experience in the starters last year. They were very young at those 2 positions and backups - but every team is young at backups. So either the older guys are just not that good, not that well coached, or some combination of those 2. The common meme now is Mattison cannot play press defense since he has two small CBs AND OR he doesnt trust the safeties...one of which was a senior last year. So either Kovaks was just that great or this is just the Mattison defense.

I dont know we gave up a lot of gash plays in the passing game playing very conservative so I'd at least like to take chances if we are going to give up those gash plays anyhow. Mattison seems to think the average Big 10 QB is a NFL dude, when outside of Cook (ugh), Devin, Hackenberg and Miller, and maybe dude from Wiscy, most of these guys don't exactly have cannons. And some of those guys above are not super accurate - he seems to show a lot of respect to a conference that probably has 2 dudes who will be playing in the NFL at QB.

But to your larger point the defense was not super young - its an excuse, especially as the year went by. Even the younger guys like Ross and Countess were 2 year starters by the end of the year. And those were some of the team's worse games (some injuries such as Ross v OSU)

It is all on your definition of "had". I think most logical people would agree while not a LOI we "had" Campbell and Harris. I think most would agree we "had" Hand - remember that post by the guy who came with Hand to UTL2 and how he dropped VATech a few months earlier and UM was in the drivers seat with Bama and UF coming in late? I dont emphasize too much the "lean" stuff but Hand was something like 70%+ to UM IMO. None of us know for sure. Now McDowell on the other hand I dont think was ever a "had" as it was always difficult to read him and it seems like his parents were more high on UM then he was...

So yes, we never had any of these kids nor we do "have" any of these 2014s other than the early enrollees but if Peppers decommits in the next 2 weeks it would be difficult to say we never "had" him except by the letter of the law. By the spirit of the law we had Campbell, Harris and one could argue Hand (more loosely). As Chantel Jennings tweeted - there is a cause and effect. The mediocre results on the field are speaking as the 2011 BCS year glow is fading fast.

More like it would help save the 2016 class. By the time UM is getting credit for a bounceback season, if it should happen, a lot of these 2015 kids will have made up their minds on where they are going or where they are taking visits.

none of them will be signed. if UM is 11-2 after a bowl win with a top ten ranking and a few weeks to signing day all of UM's '15 guys are in play.

not that im making a prediction, but there are a lot of things that can happen between the end of the season and signing day.
our* starting qb just F'n transferred, so really just about anything could happen.

McDowell is in fact visiting Sparty this weekend and he did in fact eliminate Ohio State too. Not been looking good for us for a while IMO.

Mone looked very good to me, but I guess he struggled mightily in practice at the UA AA game. One week of practice means nothing IMO, this kid is going to be great, I'm no less excited about him now than I was a few weeks ago.

I don't really know where else to put this...but I'm home for the week helping to take care of our newborn and am watching the Senior Bowl Practice...

I feel like it is worth mentioning that Michael Schofield is doing fantastic and is being applauded unanimously from the commentating crew including several comments about "great technique" after stoning Hageman.

I figured it was worth bringing up with so many concerned about Funk's tutledge.

Dammit. I knew it. I was quite pissed that we should have been plsying him at RG this season. Id bet had they put Magnuson or Braden at RT wed have been far better off with experience inside. I thought it was AMATEUR NIGHT when we start three freshmen on the interior. Seriously.